Show Therapy: 'The White Lotus'
Before we leave Thailand, we have some lingering questions about Season 3.
Welcome to our latest installment of Show Therapy, our regular feature in which we go really deep on a television series of note, assessing what works and what doesn’t. Today, we’re talking Season 3 of The White Lotus, a particularly death-obsessed season that offered a resolution that included poisoned smoothies, jaw-dropping direct deposits, daddy issues and flying bullets (that contrary to rumors, did not include monkeys shooting guns).
After the finale aired, the Ministry chatted in the lobby during checkout to give our immediate responses on this much-discussed season.
But first, some thoughts on the odd confluence of this show about wealth and privilege having its finale amid Donald Trump’s tariff-driven market wipeout.
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In an accidental conjunction of historic proportions, last night’s finale of The White Lotus was competing with the rapidly unfolding news of a stock-market crash of epic proportions. The past week had seen the American stock market decline more than 10% after the rollout of Donald Trump’s epically misbegotten tariff plan, and the utter failure of the American regime to offer any attempt to offset it made Sunday night the start of a new week of rolling catastrophe in Asia.
The Japanese stock market opened on Sunday evening New York time, right around when The White Lotus started, and declined so rapidly that circuit breakers went into effect to keep the market from plummeting further.
And on The White Lotus, too, the question of who got to have money, and who did not, lingered over the final episode. The Ratliff family each wrestled with what it might mean for the affluent to suddenly, irreversibly have nothing. Tim (Jason Isaacs) poisoned everyone’s pina coladas in an effort to protect his family from the pain of losing their wealth, which even the fledgling spiritual seeker Piper (Sarah Catherine Hook) came to realize she could not live without. (The smirk of relief and triumph on Parker Posey’s face when her daughter crumbled in the face of modest privation spoke volumes about the deforming intensity of wealth.)
Tim blanches upon confronting murdering his family, and slaps the poisoned glasses out of their hands, but neglects to clean out the blender, and their youngest son Lochlan (Sam Nivola) — the only one who believed himself capable of living without wealth — winds up suffering for his family’s sins, nearly dying for the crime of trusting his family’s illusions.
The Hong Kong market came online and immediately crashed. Were we all going to be the Ratliffs now?
Belinda (Natasha Rothwell) is offered $100,000 to stay silent about Gary/Greg (Jon Gries) having murdered his wife. The vibes are off, and Gary/Greg might be scheming to murder her, so she scurries off, but her son Zion (Nicholas Duvernay) convinces her to go back and negotiate for more. Mother and son play a double con and unexpectedly wind up $5 million richer, but the cost is the abrupt end of her burgeoning romance. Belinda and Zion get to bounce along the waves in a sexy yacht, their sheer delight at having hoodwinked the wealthy a callback to the Italian hustlers of season 2. Belinda and Zion get to have money because we feel, in some way, that they deserve it as psychic comeuppance for all of Belinda’s struggles.
“Can’t I just be rich for five fuckin’ minutes?” Belinda wondered. I don’t know. The Singapore and Australia markets’ circuit breakers had activated too.
Security guard Gaitok (Tayme Thapthimthong) pauses unbearably, down on one knee, gun cocked, ready to shoot Rick (Walton Goggins), the man who has killed his boss, and unable to. He knows this is his job, and also knows that this is not his way of being, and we watch the two necessities wrestle for dominance. He pulls the trigger and kills Rick, and in the episode’s closing montage, we see him riding in the boss’ car, a bodyguard at last. He has done what he thought he wanted, and what his crush Mook (Lalisa Manobal) wants for him, and it has rendered him someone other than the person he would prefer to be. Ambition — the ambition for money not least among it — had deformed Gaitok, yanked him away from matters of the spirit and toward the everyday cruelties of the market.
Monday morning loomed. What would the American stock market do in response to the endless turmoil caused by Trump’s tariffs? Who would we be next?
We knew we weren’t Belinda and Zion, off to a glittering future. Were we the Ratliffs, our lives wrecked when the tide went out and left us money-free? Tune in tomorrow. —Saul Austerlitz
Summarize your feelings about The White Lotus season finale.
Jennifer Keishin Armstrong: Pleasantly surprised: I found the season draggy at times, but I loved the big themes it finally arrived at and the Shakespearean nature of the ending, even if it was the most predictable one, in terms of who died and how, yet.
Saul Austerlitz: Solid. The whole season was filled with intense, at times overwhelming, dread, so it made sense that things would end as badly as they did for so many characters.
Thea Glassman: Relief (Lochlan), NO (Chelsea), Huh??! (Rick’s decision to go back to the hotel AFTER attacking the owner’s husband), Get it (Belinda), Sad (What will Sundays be now?!)
Kirthana Ramisetti: It was…fine. Without a doubt, I’ll miss chatting about this show with so many people every week, even if it was my least favorite season to date.
Who was the MVP of the season (character)?
JKA: Chelsea, who also all but predicted the ending, but more importantly was such an interesting contrast to all the other young girlfriends of old men—she felt equal to Rick, and I believed they truly loved each other. I don't feel like I've seen a couple on TV quite like them.
SA: Victoria Ratliff was such a perfect and fully-rounded vision of what could have been a one-note character. And Parker Posey was an ideal addition — absurd, cutting, self-defeating — to the White Lotus universe.
TG: I really can’t believe I’m saying this but for me it might be Timothy. It was a long, rough journey for him to come to terms with the fact that he wasn’t going to run away from what he had done — nor was he going to pull his family down with him. Seeing him head straight into the lion’s den as he boards that boat, while seeming calm and peaceful about what was to come, was quite an impressive arc.
KR: I love a surprising character arc, and never thought we’d get that from Saxon. I enjoyed the unexpected glimmers of self-reflection and vulnerability we saw from him towards season’s end. Considering how much of his identity was based on his family business and their wealth, I would have loved to have seen his reaction to the news that the Ratliffs are in ruins, and if his interactions with Chelsea would have helped him process it.
Who was the MVP of the season (actor/performance)?
JKA: Two for two: Aimee Lou Wood, who played Chelsea. None of the above works without her quirky, spirited, confident performance. There's a moment near the end when he says they're going to be together forever (double meaning!), and the little surprised/delighted tick in her face is heartbreaking. I also loved how hair and makeup and wardrobe dealt with her, always allowing her to look a tad messy. She will be the breakout star here.
SA: Carrie Coon is the MVP of everything she has ever been in, so: Carrie Coon.
TG: Oh man. A tough choice but Aimee Lou Wood. What a charming, delightful, warm, funny performance. Tied with Jason Isaacs. Never has an actor made me feel quite so stressed out.
KR: All credit due to Aimee Lou Wood, who spent a good chunk of the season either talking or worrying about Rick — did we ever learn a single thing about her life before she met him? — and make Chelsea so funny, delightful and heartbreaking.1 It was also fun spending a whole season of television with Parker Posey, a performance that gave us an endless amount of TikToks and memes.
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It’s a choice to have none of the characters acknowledge the mass shootout at the end, focused instead on their lessons and goodbyes. What did you think about this—and does The White Lotus have Olivia Pope on speed dial to manage their various PR crises?
JKA: It is kind-of hilarious that no one is like, “whoa, our luxury vacation ended in multiple rounds of gunfire!” On the other hand, I appreciate it as a viewer, because the shootout was so inevitable, and in a way, left no loose ends. You could also read it as everyone’s total narcissism! I am worried about the White Lotus chain's brand, however. This is starting to look like, at minimum, bad management.
TG: I really wondered about this. I do feel like a common theme in The White Lotus is the circle of life — that life just keeps chugging along amid violence and pain and suffering. We’re introduced to that idea at end of the first season when Armond is swiftly replaced by another hotel manager and, clean as a slate, there the staff is once again waving in the next boat.
KR: It’s weird to watch a shootout with multiple people dying and have little acknowledgement — let alone any hint of trauma — from the guests or staff. I’d love to see this resort’s Yelp reviews. (Pros: Friendly staff, beautiful beaches. Cons: Occasional violence, but you’ll still be able to get that massage.)
Let’s break down each of the storylines. Thoughts on Jaclyn, Kate and Laurie’s friendship coming out stronger after this girls’ trip? (Also, slow clap for Carrie Coon’s season-finale monologue.)
JKA: I can’t believe it, but this worked for me. Carrie Coon 100 percent sold it. That speech about the meaning of time actually made me cry. It is also hilarious how there seems to be zero blowback on Jacq having cheated on her supposedly young hot husband. She has no remorse except for its effect on her friendship with Laurie. I would absolutely watch these three go on another vacation together.
SA: This storyline really clicked for me. Longtime friendships are complex! I loved how everyone eventually came back to a place of surging emotion after all the turmoil and hurt feelings and the casual cruelty endemic to old friends. And Coon's emotional breakdown was surprisingly powerful.
TG: This was one of my favorite storylines throughout the season and I think I might be in the minority with my reaction. I didn’t totally buy Laurie’s speech. She spent so much of the trip (very rightly) questioning these relationships, feeling like an outsider and living amongst a swarm of passive aggression. I don’t really believe that she suddenly finds this intense meaning in these friendships. Unless, of course, the traumatic experience of Aleksei trying to gouge money out of her via PayPal brought her closer to the safety net of her oldest friends…
KR: I agree with Thea. On its own, the speech was resonant and lovely and delivered so beautifully by Carrie Coon. But there just needed to be one more scene between Laurie watching Jaclyn and Kate in the pool and the dinner speech to be truly earned. We were supposed to feel that her night with Aleksei put things in perspective, but it wouldn’t have hurt to make that clear to the other two so they’d have context for this sudden about-turn. But at least these friends had a true, happy ending! And I can imagine them making a White Lotus girls’ trip an annual event. (Despite, you know, almost getting killed on their last day.)
(BONUS QUESTION: What TV show did Jaclyn star on, anyway? Collectively we decided she’s the Ellen Pompeo of Grey’s Anatomy-type show: a beloved, long-running drama with a global viewership.)
The Ratliff family spent a lot of time adrift and apart yet have a shared moment of connection at season’s end before their world is forever changed. What did you think about the Lachlan fake out, his near-death experience, and the family's story as a whole?
JKA: Who knew you could make the Ratliffs sympathetic characters? The blender thing was careless and dumb and so telegraphed, but the overall effect worked for me. I think we could have gotten there without the slightly manipulative fake-out and, to be honest, without the light incest. These are the moments I get mad at this show, because it feels calculated for maximum internet discourse without real meaning. It would have been enough to see Tim deliberately not almost poison Lochy, I would argue. Because for me it's all about the moment on the boat when he finally faces his family, and there’s a feeling of peace and freedom in just acknowledging the truth instead of murdering all or most of your family. That said, going by pina colada at a luxury resort would not be the *worst* way to go. It would be much sadder to go by a damn muscle shake. Always rinse your blenders, people!
SA: It speaks to White's longstanding interest in showing people imbued with immense privilege facing turmoil and ultimately avoiding genuine consequences. We know Tim is probably going to prison, but this still felt like everyone avoiding the worst — which is consistent with White's often-bitter, class-oriented worldview.
TG: I loved that Lachlan’s near-death experience really brought Timothy back to reality and out of his lorazepam haze. There were so many stellar character arcs within the family and I want to give Mike White such a big round of applause for how he showed Piper swiftly turning the boat around and becoming her mother’s daughter. (The scene where she and Victoria are picking out jewelry and discussing highlights was a chef’s kiss.)
KR: I was surprised to find myself moved by the Pina Colada Toast of Near Death and how for all their many, many, faults, the Ratliffs really did feel like a cohesive, even loving, family unit. Maybe Tim did too, which is why he was able to shake himself out of his self-pitying malaise and face what he did. But I can’t help but feel we were robbed of Victoria’s reaction to the news! It would have been amazing.
R.I.P. Rick and Chelsea. We did indeed learn that bad things happen in threes, and that their fates were intertwined. Thoughts on their tragic ending? (Besides, GET OVER IT, RICK!)
JKA: Truly, though, dammit, Rick. I did like that they actually were together "forever," though. You never know when “forever” is coming, and that part is kind-of beautiful.
SA: This was sad, but I also never felt like I entirely understood why Chelsea was so intensely devoted to Rick. Walton Goggins was superb, but I never felt like I wrapped my head around why Rick was so fixated on revenge for his dead father.
TG: I loved Chelsea with my whole heart. I struggled with Rick. He was so awful to her 95% of the season — angry, moody, withholding, ignoring all of her phone calls as she spiraled. I didn’t feel as attached to him as a character. Also, can someone please explain to me how he thought he’d get away with going back to the hotel unscathed after what happened in Bangkok??
KR: Walter Goggins and Aimee Lou Wood had such amazing chemistry together that they turned the eyerolling trope of damaged older dude/free-spirited younger woman into a relationship that you could almost be invested in. But the key word is almost. Their dialogue the entire season could be summed up basically as:
Rick: I have business to take care of in Bangkok.
Chelsea: Rick, don’t do something stupid!
It was just painfully one-note for me to feel the full weight of their twin demises as truly tragic, rather just plain dumb.
Belinda finally gets a happy ending after some crafty mother-son negotiating with Greg/Gary. Did you find this resolution satisfying?
JKA: Zion turns out to be a tool, huh? Their last act was at least somewhat fun to watch after not having much to do the rest of the season. I do not totally see this as a happy ending, though; I feel like this is not karma-free money and more trouble could be in store for her. The telltale sign is the way she just threw poor Pornchai away. So I would like to see her again for that reason, presuming something truly interesting and juicy happens to her besides hearing some noises in her room.
TG: I just finished watching the first season for the first time and getting to see Belinda get what she was owed felt like an extra satisfying as a bookend. I loved that Mike White said her ending was the first one he thought of. It was such a fitting shot, seeing her pull away from the hotel — and a sad gut punch, too, as she doled out a small dose of what Tanya once gave to her.
KR: Two things that resonated with me: The fun twist of Belinda realizing how she could get more money out of Gary/Greg, rather than sitting by and let her son negotiate for her. It’s the first real agency we’ve seen out of the character in some time. And then I know that taking the money shows that Belinda has compromised her values. But when she said, “Can I just be rich for five fucking minutes?” when asked about her dreams of opening her own business, I felt that. After a career in catering to other people’s needs, Belinda deserves to be pampered!
Gaitok, Mook and the Russian thieves. Discuss.
JKA: I have found all of them massively uninteresting throughout the series, but I appreciated Gaitok's final turn. I truly was not sure what he would do until he killed Rick. This might be the Buddhist in me, but I liked the way he teetered on the brink and in the end gave into the darkness (like Rick, like Belinda). He might end up with Mook this way, but I think eventually he'll look at his hot, terrible wife in 20 years and realize he made a huge mistake. He also makes an interesting pairing with Frank. Gaitok is a good Buddhist gone bad; Frank is a Buddhist who had a momentary lapse and went back to his practice. (Again, the Buddhist jumping out here!)
TG: I would have loved to have seen the Russian thieves partying on the island with the next crop of women on an emotionally-complicated girlfriends trip. Gaitok and Mook — meh? The relationship was flimsy to me and I found their dynamic a little frustrating. It did remind me a bit of the Connie Britton/Steve Zahn/Questions of Manliness theme from Season One.
KR: ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ (I get what Mike White was going for. But it was another one-note storyline populated by charismatic actors who had paper-thin characterizations)
Mike White has received a lot of deserved criticism for his one-dimensional writing of the non-white characters. Did having Belinda return, and the Gaitok/Mook storyline, only amplify those concerns?
JKA: Short answer: yes. Thematically, they turn out to be doing something, but they are not even close to, say, Chelsea, in conception, or, hell, even Saxon, who really went through it and ended up reading books in the end.
TG: I particularly felt like the Gaitok and Mook relationship wasn’t fleshed out in the ways so many others have been on the show. It was pretty repetitive and one note (she lights up when he might rise in the security ranks, deflates when he doesn’t, rinse and repeat) and I don’t think Lisa Manobal was given nearly enough to work with. Crazy as their dynamic was, even Gary and Chloe had richer, more memorable scenes.
KR: Usually, the staff members of White Lotus have the most compelling characters and interesting storylines. So it’s telling that the Gaitok-Mook storyline was so meh. It’s also worth noting that Natasha Rothwell collaborated with Mike White on scenes to make sure that Belinda authentically reflected experiences her as a Black woman. As long as White Lotus keeps filming in international locales, then it would behoove him to know his limitations and at the very least extend that consideration to any other non-white character he writes on the show.
Where do we want the show to travel next? And is it time to take death out of the equation for future seasons, or is that too essential to the show's DNA?
JKA: I have trepidation about where to go next, given the handling of nonwhite characters. Death-wise, I think it has to stay. It is the show's central franchise and, you must admit, the reason we all talk about it is partly to figure out who dies. I actually like the conceit, though, as we said, it's truly looking bad for the White Lotus chain.
TG: I do suspect death will always be on the menu. I’d be so curious to see guests check into a White Lotus in a big, bustling city. Can it be Paris so Philippine Leroy-Beaulieu is the next hotel manager?
KR: The “Who’s going to die?” part is what brings us back each week, but this season’s deaths were not nearly as “OMG!” as the first two, which is why perhaps I’m kind of over this part of the White Lotus formula. As for locale, Australia is famously populated with a lot of deadly creatures, so that could be very on theme.
It’s rumored that there is an all-star season in the works. Who from Season 3 would you like to see come back in a future season?
JKA: Ooh! I'm not dying to see the Ratliffs in the form that we saw them here, but I think it would be so interesting to see how they've changed in a year or two, and the Trio seems like they could come back and make a lot more trouble.
TG: I would *love* if the next season took place at Belinda’s new hotel/spa. I’m trying to think about which character arcs still feel unfinished — selfishly I’d like to see the Ratliff family again. Maybe Victoria found wealth selling homemade kaftans on Etsy? Wherever they go, I hope she still thinks they’re in Taiwan.
KR: I also would be all about seeing Belinda and The Trio again, but Belinda getting to be a guest and actually interact with the other guests on the same level as them, and have a storyline outside of her connection to Tanya.
Any other thoughts on the season in general?
JKA: I'm disappointed that *no one* ended up in the damn monastery. I think pretty much everyone here could benefit from a week to a year there. Wait, did I just pitch season 4?
TG: It’s been so long since I’ve had an appointment television show. I love that The White Lotus is so widely watched and loved which means (at long last) water cooler conversations can flourish.
KR: The fact that The White Lotus mandates guests give up their phones and laptops meant they were constantly reading, and it was fun to note what their book selections reflected about the characters. (To the book concierge choosing books for Season 4, we have some recommendations!)
NOW TELL US: What were your thoughts on this season of The White Lotus, and what would you like to see happen in Season 4?
(I’m going to also be that annoying TV viewer who knew about Season 2 ‘s Meghann Fahy from The Bold Type and Season 3’s Aimee Lou Wood from Sex Education, so wasn’t surprised that both were the breakout stars of their respective seasons.)